About Me

Anthony Balducci, 60, studied journalism at Baruch College in Manhattan and earned a criminology degree at the University of Florida. His first book, a biography of film comedian Lloyd Hamilton, was published by McFarland in 2009. The Funny Parts, a book detailing the history of gags and routines, was published by McFarland in 2012.

Dean Martin, Janet Leigh and Jerry Lewis during the filming of Living It Up, 1954.

So, then, you may now think that you could easily recognize the man-child. Be aware, though, that other key man-child traits are still to be discussed in upcoming posts. The traits are sometimes obvious. A man adding earmuffs to a gentleman in a portrait qualifies as clear and irrefutable evidence of a childish nature.

Harpo Marx

Uninhibited leaping is a sign of a childish nature, too. In My Girl (1991), Macaulay Culkin and Anna Chlumsky demonstrate the carefree way that children leap about in their playful escapades.

We see that leaping, too, with the comic man-child.

Bing Crosby and Bob Hope

Martin and Lewis

Martin and Lewis, again

Martin and Lewis, again

Harold Lloyd

Danny Kaye

Paul Rudd, Will Ferrell, David Koechner and Steve Carell in Anchorman The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)

Of course, reading my book will undoubtedly turn you into a bona fide scholar on the subject.

E. H. Calvert and Groucho Marx in Horse Feathers (1932)

I have to briefly postpone the "Get to Know Your Man-child" series as my son is coming to spend a few days with me. For now, you can enjoy a couple of clips from the Colgate Comedy Hour, which often treated viewers to the childish antics of Martin and Lewis.